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GST Primary GST Primary Best Strategies for Health Care Quality Im... Best Strategies for Health Care Quality Improvement - Diabetes Quality Improvement Strategies for Antibio... Kathryn McDonald, Stanford-UCSF Evidence-b... Systematic review assessing the effect of ... Quality Improvement Strategies for Antibiotics Management Kathryn McDonald, Stanford-UCSF Evidence-based Practice Center, 117 Encina Commons, Stanford, CA 94305-6019, Kathy.mcdonald@stanford.edu Systematic review assessing the effect of quality improvement strategies on appropriate prescribing of antibiotics and appropriate choice of antibiotics. Adherence Adherence Assistive Devices Assistive Devices Childhood Burn Hanson MacMillan Childhood Burn Hanson MacMillan CLSA_9 CLSA_9 Cyberabuse Cyberabuse Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Violent ... This review included randomized trials abo... Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Violent Men who Batter Their Partners This review included randomized trials about the effects of cognitive behavioral therapy on domestic violence. The intervention included programs based on the Duluth Model. The violence had to be committed by a male toward his female partner. The violence also had to be physical. The primary outcomes were new arrests and convictions, and new reports of violence. CABG vs PCI CABG vs PCI Quality Improvement Strategies for Prevent... Quality Improvement Strategies for Preventing Nosocomial Infections (Created 17-Feb-06) Quality Improvement Strategies for Asthma ... Quality Improvement Strategies for Asthma Control Erectile Dysfunction (Created 30-Jan-06) Erectile Dysfunction (Created 30-Jan-06) Inequality - Smoking Cessation to Reduce S... This review was the first part of a projec... Inequality - Smoking Cessation to Reduce Socio-Economic Differences This review was the first part of a project about inequality. It included randomized trials about the effect of smoking cessation interventions on reducing socio-economic differences. The studies had to report data either on persons with low socio-economic groups status or, preferably, on both low and high socio-economic groups. Diet and Physical Activity to Reduce Socio... This review was the second part in a proje... Diet and Physical Activity to Reduce Socio-Economic Differences This review was the second part in a project about inequality. It included randomized trials about the effect of interventions on reducing socio-economic differences in diet and physical activity. The studies had to report data either on persons with low socio-economic groups status or, preferably, on both low and high socio-economic groups. Workfare The data in SRS are not identical to the d... Workfare The data in SRS are not identical to the data in the published report. We used SRS only for an updated search. The review included randomized trials about the effect of welfare-to-work programs. Participants were welfare recipients. There were basically two types of programs. The educational type tried to build knowledge and skills in order to help the welfare recipients acquire jobs that could support them economically. The "work first" approach was more aimed at getting the participants quickly into a job. Exercise interventions for the management ... The objective of this systematic review wa... Exercise interventions for the management of frailty The objective of this systematic review was to examine the effectiveness of current exercise interventions on the management of frailty. A comprehensive search of Medline, Embase, Psycinfo, Cinahl, Scopus, Ageline, Eric, and SportDiscus databases was conducted and produced 1808 citations. So far we have completed 2 levels of “title and abstract” screening and we ended up with 262 articles. We have just started the full text screening. Eligibility criteria included original studies whose participants were identified as frail or prefrail with specific criteria and in which structured physical activity was included as at least one component of the intervention. Create a free account, build a dictionary with saved terms to re-use later! Public Domestic Violence - Using Cognitive Behavior Therapy Smoking Cessation to Reduce Socio-Economic Differences Diet and Physical Activity to Reduce Socio-Economic Differences Workfare Exercise Interventions for the Management of Frailty Search     Simple Advanced Refine (4 coded questions)  Any of these:   Exact Phrase: All of these: None of these: Author: Periodical: Projects: No restrictions   Libraries: Public   Select SRS Projects Show Saved Terms Select Library Show articles that do not have abstracts  Language English French German Italian Japanese Russian Spanish Afrikaans Albanian Unknown Arabic Armenian Azerbaijani Bosnian Bulgarian Catalan Chinese Croatian Czech Danish Dutch Esperanto Estonian Finnish Georgian Greek, Modern Hebrew Hindi Hungarian Icelandic Indonesian Kinyarwanda Korean Latin Latvian Lithuanian Macedonian Malay Malayalam Maori Multiple Languages Norwegian Persian Polish Portuguese Pushto Romanian Sanskrit Scottish gaelic Serbian Slovak Slovenian Swedish Thai Turkish Ukrainian Vietnamese Not English Not French Humans or Animals Humans Animals Type of Article Clinical Trial Editorial Letter Meta-Analysis Practice Guideline Randomized Controlled Trial Review Addresses Bibliography Biography Case Reports Classical Article Clinical Conference Clinical Trial, Phase I Clinical Trial, Phase II Clinical Trial, Phase III Clinical Trial, Phase IV Comment Comparative Study Consensus Development Conference Consensus Development Conference, NIH Controlled Clinical Trial Corrected and Republished Article Dictionary Directory Duplicate Publication English Abstract Evaluation Studies Festschrift Government Publications Guideline Historical Article Interview In Vitro Journal Article Lectures Legal Cases Legislation Multicenter Study News Newspaper Article Overall Patient Education Handout Periodical Index Published Erratum Retracted Publication Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S. Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S. Retraction of Publication Scientific Integrity Review Support of Research Technical Report Twin Study Validation Studies Not a Primary Study or Review Unknown Primary Study Case Series Case Control Cohort Study Observational Study Qualitative Research CBA or ITS Registry Double Blind Controlled before after study Quasi-randomized trial Simple before after study Cluster-RCT Non-Randomized Study Report Book Book chapter Dissertation Conference procedings Secondary Research Not RCT Ages All Infant: birth-23 months All Child: 0-18 years All Adult: 19+ years Newborn: birth-1 month Infant: 1-23 months Preschool Child: 2-5 years Child: 6-12 years Adolescent: 13-18 years Adult: 19-44 years Middle Aged: 45-64 years Middle Aged + Aged: 45+ years Aged: 65+ years 80 and over: 80+ years Undetermined Results(1-25 of 3,516) Sort By: Publication Date Relevance Took: 0.252 seconds to search 17,750,454  Action: Copy Results to new Clipboard Build Search Link Page 1 of 141 1 2 3 4 > Last >> (3516 articles found) Development of nursing care quality improvement system on website in Japan. 2006 Atsuko Uchinuno,Noriko Katada,Kazuko Kamiizumi,Noriko Awaya,Noriko Awaya,Reiko Sakashita,Reiko Sakurai,Keiko Tei,Naoko Otsuka A model for measuring the quality of nursing care has been developed in Japan since 1993 by Katada. Then a self evaluation model was developed in 2002 by Abe et al. This model consisted of three dimensions: structure, process, and outcome. Each dimension was constructed from measurements of six dom... ( view more )ains which applicants categorized previously, such as "understanding individuality", "patient empowerment", "family care", "direct care", "medical team coordination", and "incident prevention" In this study, it has been developed and posted on a web site for inspection and examined for its usability. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details   Related Articles [Central clinical laboratory and infection control team: an essential partnership controlling health care-associated infections] Feb 2005 Hiroyuki Kayaba,Masako Tobita,Noriko Tomita,Noriko Kobayashi,Ryozo Fukui,Noriyuki Saitoh,Shigeharu Ueki,Yoshiki Kobayashi,Noriko Sakurada,Jun-ichi Chihara Infection Control Committee (ICC) of Akita University Hospital was established in 1980's, when methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) spread in teaching hospitals in Japan. After 20 years from the establishment of ICC, we needed to shake up some of the outdated infection control systems... ( view more ). Infection Control Team (ICT) was established in 2002 to reinforce ICC. ICT was consisted of five infection control doctors (ICD), two infection control nurses (ICN), two medical technicians in bacteriological division of clinical laboratory, one pharmacist and three administrative officials in the hospital. Monitoring of multiple drug-resistant pathogens, antibiotic use, surgical site infections and bloodstream infections are mandatory. Personnel training and educational activity are also required. After the establishment of ICT, inappropriate use of antibiotics and prevalence of MRSA were dramatically decreased. The hospital saved more than 30,000,000 yen annually. However, with a great regret, we experienced an outbreak of MRSA in a department of our hospital in 2003. MRSA infection was judged as a cause of death in three patients in the outbreak. MRSA was thought to transmit via medical personnel since pulsed-field gel electrophoresis revealed common genotype in 11 out of 15 patients studied. Prevention of healthcare-associated infections is a crucial in the management of hospitals. In this paper, we verified the efforts to control the outbreak and analyzed factors interfering infection control activities. A crucial role of a clinical laboratory in controlling healthcare associated infections was also discussed. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Co-existence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium intracellulare in one sputum sample. 2008 Masahide Takeda,Wataru Ito,Noriko Kobayashi,Keiko Konno,Tomoe Takahashi,Rumi Tatsuko,Noriko Tomita,Tomomi Tanigai,Takahito Chiba,Kazutoshi Yamaguchi,Kazuhiro Sato,Shigeharu Ueki,Hiroyuki Kayaba,Junichi Chihara An 81-year-old man was admitted to the hospital with a severe sore throat and a low grade fever. A chest radiograph showed bilateral diffuse reticulonodular shadows. By fluorescent stain for mycobacteria, his sputum smear showed acid-fast bacteria. The initial polymerase chain reaction (PCR) of his... ( view more ) sputum revealed Mycobacterium intracellulare (M. intracellulare), but not Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis). However, a repeat PCR was performed because M. tuberculosis could not be ruled out due to his clinical symptoms and chest imaging. The second PCR detected both M. intracellulare and M. tuberculosis. From the standpoint of infection control, this case illustrates the possibility that M. tuberculosis could be a threat if a second PCR is not done. While PCR is a useful exam for diagnosing M. tuberculosis, it can produce false negative results. Therefore, for diagnosing tuberculosis, particularly in a case such as the present case, a second PCR, which is not normally necessary, should be done. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Dose-dependent differential regulation of cytokine secretion from macrophages by fractalkine. Dec 1, 2007 Noriko Mizutani,Toshiharu Sakurai,Takahiro Shibata,Koji Uchida,Jun Fujita,Rei Kawashima,Yuki I Kawamura,Noriko Toyama-Sorimachi,Toshio Imai,Taeko Dohi Although expression of the fractalkine (CX3CL1, FKN) is enhanced in inflamed tissues, it is detected at steady state in various organs such as the intestine, and its receptor CX3CR1 is highly expressed in resident-type dendritic cells and macrophages. We hypothesized that FKN might regulate the inf... ( view more )lammatory responses of these cells. Therefore, murine macrophages were pretreated with FKN and then stimulated with LPS. We found that macrophages pretreated with 0.03 nM FKN but not with 3 nM FKN secreted 50% less TNF-alpha than did cells treated with LPS alone. Cells treated with 0.03 nM FKN and LPS also showed reduced phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and reduced NF-kappaB p50 subunit. Interestingly, the p65 subunit of NF-kappaB was translocated to the nuclei but redistributed to the cytoplasm in the early phase by forming a complex with peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) gamma. Exogenous 15-deoxy-Delta(12,14)-prostaglandin J2, a natural ligand for PPAR-gamma, also induced redistribution of p65 with decreased TNF-alpha secretion after LPS challenge. Pretreatment with 0.03 nM but not 3 nM FKN increased the cellular levels of 15-deoxy-Delta(12,14)-prostaglandin J2 as well as mRNA of PPAR-gamma. Requirement of PPAR-gamma for the effect of 0.03 nM FKN was confirmed by small interfering RNA of PPAR-gamma. In contrast, pretreatment with 3 nM FKN induced higher levels of IL-23 compared with cells pretreated with 0.03 nM FKN and produced TNF-alpha in a CX3CR1-dependent manner. These dose-dependent differential effects of FKN establish its novel role in immune homeostasis and inflammation. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Phase I trial of FLAGM with high doses of cytosine arabinoside for relapsed, refractory acute myeloid leukemia: study of the Japan Adult Leukemia Study Group (JALSG). Nov 2007 Shuichi Miyawaki,Yasukazu Kawai,Akihiro Takeshita,Norio Komatsu,Noriko Usui,Yukihiro Arai,Fumihiro Ishida,Takeshi Morii,Yasuhiko Kano,Michinori Ogura,Noriko Doki,Ryuzo Ohno This study was designed to determine the optimal high dose for cytosine arabinoside (ara-C) in combination with fludarabine, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, and mitoxantrone (FLAGM) in adult patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia. Nine patients were enrolled at increasin... ( view more )g dosage levels of ara-C (8, 12, and 16 g/m2 per dose level). Ara-C and fludarabine were administered once a day at level 1, once or twice a day at level 2, and twice a day at level 3. All patients had grade 4 hematologic toxicity. The most common adverse events were of grade 2 or less, with nausea and vomiting being the most common (6 events), followed by diarrhea (5 events), and rash (5 events). Of the 13 grade 3 nonhematologic toxicities reported, the 2 most common were febrile neutropenia (6 events) and disseminated intravascular coagulation (3 events). No early deaths were observed. FLAGM with high-dose ara-C was considered safe for patients, and the recommended dosage of ara-C in this study was 2 g/m2 every 12 hours for a total dose of 16 g/m2. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Transitin, a nestin-like intermediate filament protein, mediates cortical localization and the lateral transport of Numb in mitotic avian neuroepithelial cells. Jul 2007 Yoshio Wakamatsu,Noriko Nakamura,Ju-Ahng Lee,Gregory J Cole,Noriko Osumi Neuroepithelium is an apicobasally polarized tissue that contains neural stem cells and gives rise to neurons and glial cells of the central nervous system. The cleavage orientation of neural stem cells is thought to be important for asymmetric segregation of fate-determinants, such as Numb. Here, ... ( view more )we show that an intermediate filament protein, transitin, colocalizes with Numb in the cell cortex of mitotic neuroepithelial cells, and that transitin anchors Numb via a physical interaction. Detailed immunohistological and time-lapse analyses reveal that basal Numb-transitin complexes shift laterally during mitosis, allowing asymmetric segregation of Numb-transitin to one of the daughter cells, even when the cell cleavage plane is perpendicular to the ventricular surface. In addition, RNA interference (RNAi) knockdown of the transitin gene reveals its involvement in neurogenesis. These results indicate that transitin has important roles in determining the intracellular localization of Numb, which regulates neurogenesis in the developing nervous system of avian embryos. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles [Clinical evaluation after an introduction of our manual for antibiotic use during perioperative period and a notification policy of use of the antibiotics for MRSA] Mar 2007 Wataru Ito,Noriko Kobayashi,Hiroyuki Kayaba,Tomoe Takahashi,Masahide Takeda,Takahito Chiba,Kazutoshi Yamaguchi,Ryouzou Fukui,Noriko Tomita,Junichi Chihara Abuse of antibiotics results in unfavorable consequences in healthcare associated infection control, such as emergence of multiple-resistant bacteria, and increased medical cost and nosocomial infection. In 2003, we had an outbreak of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in a surgical... ( view more ) ward of Akita University Hospital. With the aim of preventing inappropriate use of antibiotics during perioperative period, a guideline for usage of antibiotics, which is made by surgeons themselves, was introduced, and a notification policy of the antibiotic use for MRSA was also applied in 2004. In this study, we evaluated the influence of the antibiotic restriction on changes in antibiotics consumption, prevalence of multiple-drug-resistant pathogens, and their susceptibility to antibiotics. The notification policy reduced the cost and amount of antibiotics and the prevalence of multiple-drug-resistant pathogens, such as MRSA and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The susceptibility of bacteria, such as Staphylococcus aureus, MRSA, Serratia marcescens and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, to antibiotics showed a remarkable improvement. The introduction of notification policy for usage of antibiotics has a favorable influence on the infection control in hospitals and re education of doctors. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details   Related Articles Increased inhibitory capacity of an anti-C5a complementary peptide following acetylation of N-terminal alanine. 2007 Noriko Okada,Suzuka Asai,Aya Hotta,Noriko Miura,Naohito Ohno,Imre Farkas,Lewis Hau,Hidechika Okada Amino acids 37 to 53 (RAARISLGPRCIKAFTE) of C5a anaphylatoxin form an essential region for C5a function. To target this sequence, we generated a complementary peptide (ASGAPAPGPAGPLRPMF) designated PepA which has a potent inhibitory effect on C5a activity. By introducing an acetyl group at the N-te... ( view more )rminal alanine of PepA, an acetylated form was generated which was designated AcPepA. The acetylation resulted in increased inhibition of C5a stimulation of neutrophils as determined by Ca influx. Furthermore, AcPepA partially inhibited the lethal shock induced in mice by intravenous administration of Candida albicans water-soluble mannoprotein-beta-glucan complex. In addition, local skin inflammation in rats caused by an anti-Crry monoclonal antibody was suppressed when AcPepA and the antibody were injected together, while PepA had little inhibitory capacity. The potent inhibitory capacity of AcPepA was also confirmed by a skin reaction of guinea pigs inoculated with recombinant human C5a together with AcPepA. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Triggering neural differentiation of ES cells by subtype switching of importin-alpha. Jan 2007 Noriko Yasuhara,Noriko Shibazaki,Shinya Tanaka,Masahiro Nagai,Yasunao Kamikawa,Souichi Oe,Munehiro Asally,Yusuke Kamachi,Hisato Kondoh,Yoshihiro Yoneda Nuclear proteins are selectively imported into the nucleus by transport factors such as importin-alpha and importin-beta. Here, we show that the expression of importin-alpha subtypes is strictly regulated during neural differentiation of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells, and that the switching of im... ( view more )portin-alpha subtype expression is critical for neural differentiation. Moreover, reproducing the switching of importin-alpha subtype expression in undifferentiated ES cells induced neural differentiation in the presence of leukaemia inhibitory factor (LIF) and serum, coordinated with the regulated expression of Oct3/4, Brn2 and SOX2, which are involved in ES-neural identity determination. These transcription factors were selectively imported into the nucleus by specific subtypes of importin-alpha. Thus, importin-alpha subtype switching has a major impact on cell differentiation through the regulated nuclear import of a specific set of transcription factors. This is the first study to propose that transport factors should be considered as major players in cell-fate determination. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles DBC2 is essential for transporting vesicular stomatitis virus glycoprotein. Dec 1, 2006 Faith K Chang,Noriko Sato,Noriko Kobayashi-Simorowski,Takashi Yoshihara,Jennifer L Meth,Masaaki Hamaguchi DBC2 is a tumor suppressor gene linked to breast and lung cancers. Although DBC2 belongs to the RHO GTPase family, it has a unique structure that contains a Broad-Complex/Tramtrack/Bric a Brac (BTB) domain at the C terminus instead of a typical CAAX motif. A limited number of functional studies on ... ( view more )DBC2 have indicated its participation in diverse cellular activities, such as ubiquitination, cell-cycle control, cytoskeleton organization and protein transport. In this study, the role of DBC2 in protein transport was analyzed using vesicular stomatitis virus glycoprotein (VSVG) fused with green fluorescent protein. We discovered that DBC2 knockdown hinders the VSVG transport system in 293 cells. Previous studies have demonstrated that VSVG is transported via the microtubule motor complex. We demonstrate that DBC2 mobility depends also on an intact microtubule network. We conclude that DBC2 plays an essential role in microtubule-mediated VSVG transport from the endoplasmic reticulum to the Golgi apparatus. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details   Related Articles IL-13 receptor alpha2 promotes epithelial cell regeneration from radiation-induced small intestinal injury in mice. Jul 2006 Rei Kawashima,Yuki I Kawamura,Rie Kato,Noriko Mizutani,Noriko Toyama-Sorimachi,Taeko Dohi BACKGROUND & AIMS: The cytokines interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-13 have pleiotropic effects on a variety of cell types and impact both pathologic changes and tissue remodeling. The aim of this study was to clarify the roles of IL-13 receptor alpha2 (IL-13Ralpha2), which is the high-affinity decoy recept... ( view more )or for IL-13, in gastrointestinal tract epithelial cell turnover and repair. METHODS: We have compared the regenerative process following mucosal damage induced by whole-body 3-Gy X-ray irradiation of wild-type (WT) and IL-4 receptor alpha gene-deficient (IL-4R(-/-)) mice. Then we treated mice with IL-13Ralpha2 human immunoglobulin (Ig) chimeric protein. RESULTS: Up-regulation of mRNA levels for IL-13 in NK cells in the lamina propria was seen after irradiation of WT mice. Concomitant with vigorous epithelial cell division in the jejunum following irradiation, expression of the IL-13Ralpha2 dramatically increased in myofibroblasts and fibroblasts. In contrast, epithelial cell repair was delayed in IL-4R(-/-) mice, which did not show transient up-regulation of IL-13Ralpha2, although up-regulation of IL-13 was seen. Addition of IL-13 but not IL-4 to primary cultures of small intestine from both WT and IL-4R(-/-) mice induced epithelial cell damage. Treatment of IL-4R(-/-) mice with IL-13Ralpha2-Ig resulted in increased numbers of dividing epithelial cells and improved tissue repair after irradiation. Further, treatment with IL-13Ralpha2-Ig increased numbers of microcolonies of regenerating epithelial cells in the intestine of WT mice after severe damage induced by 12-Gy irradiation. CONCLUSIONS: The IL-13Ralpha2 is a major regulatory factor involved in the regeneration of epithelial cells in the gastrointestinal tract. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Pax6 is required for production and maintenance of progenitor cells in postnatal hippocampal neurogenesis. Oct 2005 Motoko Maekawa,Noriko Takashima,Yoko Arai,Tadashi Nomura,Kaoru Inokuchi,Shigeki Yuasa,Noriko Osumi Neurogenesis is crucial for brain formation and continues to take place in certain regions of the postnatal brain including the subgranular zone (SGZ) of the hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG). Pax6 transcription factor is a key player for patterning the brain and promoting embryonic neurogenesis, and ... ( view more )is also expressed in the SGZ. In the DG of wild-type rats, more than 90% of total BrdU-incorporated cells expressed Pax6 at 30 min time point after BrdU injection. Moreover, approximately 60% of Pax6+ cells in the SGZ exhibited as GFAP+ cells with a radial glial phenotype and about 30% of Pax6+ cells exhibited as PSA-NCAM+ cells in clusters. From BrdU labeling for 3 days, we found that cell proliferation was 30% decreased at postnatal stages in Pax6-deficient rSey2/+ rat. BrdU pulse/chase experiments combined with marker staining revealed that PSA-NCAM+ late progenitor cells increased at the expense of GFAP+ early progenitors in rSey2/+ rat. Furthermore, expression of Wnt ligands in the SGZ was markedly reduced in rSey2/+ rat. Taken all together, an appropriate dosage of Pax6 is essential for production and maintenance of the GFAP+ early progenitor cells in the postnatal hippocampal neurogenesis. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles [A woman complicated with immune thrombocytopenic purpura, subclinical Graves disease and peripheral neuropathy 5 years after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation] Oct 2005 Hiroyuki Ishida,Noriko Shin-Nakai,Toshihiko Imamura,Kentaro Yokoi,Takao Yoshihara,Noriko Fujii,Kentaro Tsunamoto,Shigeyoshi Hibi,Akira Morimoto,Shinsaku Imashuku A 21-year-old woman developed immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), subclinical Graves disease and peripheral neuropathy without typical chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) 5 years following an allogeneic bone marrow transplantation from an HLA-identical sibling. She received high-dose intravenous im... ( view more )munoglobulin (IVIG) and prednisolone (PSL), which resulted in transient recovery of platelet numbers and muscle weakness. A combination of cyclosporine and PSL induced a durable response against not only the thrombocytopenia but also her high levels of thyroid stimulating antibody (TSAb), muscle weakness and sensory abnormality. The level of thyroglobulin in the donor, who had not developed Graves disease, was also elevated, indicating that late onset-subclinical Graves disease was caused by donor lymphocytes that were autoreactive to the thyroid glands. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Rapidly progressed acquired immunodeficiency syndrome dementia complex as an initial manifestation. Jul 2005 Makoto Takeuchi,Keigo Nobukuni,Hiroshi Takata,Noriko Kawata,Noriko Hayashibara,Hideki Ishizu,Kiyoshi Takahashi We report a patient with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome dementia complex (ADC) that presented human immunodeficiency virus infection as an initial manifestation. A 34-year-old man developed disturbance of consciousness and severe abulia over 3 months. The CD4 lymphocyte count was 7.9/microl, wh... ( view more )ile human immunodeficiency virus RNA in blood amounted to 4.2 x 10(4) copies/ml. T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging showed diffusely high signal intensity in the deep white matter of both cerebral hemispheres. On the 20th hospital day, the patient died of sepsis caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Autopsy findings in the brain included increased glial cells and multinucleated giant cells in cerebral white matter and subcortical gray matter. These features were compatible with ADC. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Prolonged survival in a female with untreated tetralogy of Fallot. Jun 1, 2005 Seiya Tanaka,Noriko Kikuchi,Noriko Hirakawa,Kazuhito Yamashita,Ryouji Kouzuma,Masahiro Okazaki,Hiromi Tasaki,Yasuhide Nakashima It has been reported that most patients with untreated tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) die by the time they reach adulthood. We report the case of a 72-year-old female diagnosed by echocardiography and cardiac cathetherization as having TOF and diagnosed at birth with a ventricular septal defect (VSD). D... ( view more )uring childhood, she was very thin and lacking in physical strength. On first consultation at our hospital, she was suffering from mild dyspnea, classified as NYHA functional class III, and her fingers were clubbed and cyanotic. Her PaO2 was 48.0 mmHg under room air, and hypoxia was recognized. An echocardiography and cardiac cathetherization showed a VSD, hypertrophy of the right ventricle, over-riding of the aorta and stenosis of the right ventricular outflow tract with a pressure gradient of 84 mmHg. There was a bidirectional shunt with 24% flow from the left to right and 43% from the right to left ventricle. Her Qp/Qs was 0.75. Surgical treatment was recommended. However, the patient refused, because her symptoms were alleviated with home oxygen therapy. This report shows the prolonged survival of this 72-year-old female with untreated TOF. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Association of active gamma-secretase complex with lipid rafts. May 2005 Yasuomi Urano,Ikuo Hayashi,Noriko Isoo,Patrick C Reid,Yoshikazu Shibasaki,Noriko Noguchi,Taisuke Tomita,Takeshi Iwatsubo,Takao Hamakubo,Tatsuhiko Kodama Cholesterol has been implicated in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Although the underlying mechanisms are not yet clear, several studies have provided evidence for the involvement of cholesterol-rich lipid rafts in the production of amyloid beta peptide (Abeta), the major component of... ( view more ) amyloid deposits in AD. In this regard, the gamma-secretase complex is responsible for the final cleavage event in the processing of beta-amyloid precursor protein (betaAPP), resulting in Abeta generation. The gamma-secretase complex is a multiprotein complex composed of presenilin, nicastrin (NCT), APH-1, and PEN-2. Recent reports have suggested that gamma-secretase activity is predominantly localized in lipid rafts, and presenilin and NCT have been reported to be localized in lipid rafts. In this study, various biochemical methods, including coimmunoprecipitation, in vitro gamma-secretase assay, and methyl-beta-cyclodextrin (MbetaCD) treatment, are employed to demonstrate that all four components of the active endogenous gamma-secretase complex, including APH-1 and PEN-2, are associated with lipid rafts in human neuroblastoma cells (SH-SY5Y). Treatment with statins, 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA-reductase inhibitors, significantly decreased the association of the gamma-secretase complex with lipid rafts without affecting the distribution of flotillin-1. This effect was partially abrogated by the addition of geranylgeraniol. These results suggest that both cholesterol and protein isoprenylation influence the active gamma-secretase complex association with lipid rafts. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles [Hospital infection control reduced medical care costs by saving dispensable antibiotics] Dec 2004 Shigeharu Ueki,Yoshiki Kobayashi,Hiroyuki Kayaba,Akira Kanda,Norihiro Saito,Takahito Chiba,Noriko Kobayashi,Shoko Tobita,Noriko Tomita,Junichi Chihara Medical costs associated with hospital-acquired infection is a critical problem for hospital management. The introduction of the Diagnosis Procedure Combination (DPC) system requires the re-evaluation of the cost-effectiveness of any medical procedure including the usage of antibiotics. Achieving h... ( view more )igh cost-effectiveness and quality of medical service are essential for hospitals to survive the current changes in medical systems. Inappropriate use of antimicrobial agents results in unnecessary exposure to medication, persistent or progressive infection, emergence of resistance, and increased costs. We undertook an observational pre and post-intervention study to assess whether a comprehensive antimicrobial management program developed by the new ICT installed 2002 in Akita University Hospital could reduce the use of antibiotics. Annual total amounts of antibiotics and anti-MRSA antibiotics, and the number of patients undergoing long-term treatment with antibiotics, fell dramatically. This ICT approach thus reduced antibiotic costs, contributed to infection control, and improved the quality of antibiotic prescription. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles [Correlation of health condition, physique and dietary-lifestyle of first grade and sixth grade primary school children and their mothers] Jul 2004 Akiko Sakuma,Noriko Maeoomichi,Mitsuko Oda,Noriko Kishida PURPOSE: Health condition, physique and dietary-lifestyle were studied by grade and sex of primary school children and by age, employment status, and family composition of their mothers. Correlation between the school children and their mothers were analyzed with the aim of elucidating parameters f... ( view more )or effective health education. METHODS: The study was made using 2,162 first (6-7 years old) and sixth grade (11-12 years old) primary school children and their mothers, with correlation made for 1,993 cases who responded. Comparison were made by grade and sex of the school children and by age, employment status, and family composition of their mothers. For the correlation of health condition and dietary-lifestyle of children and mothers, a multiple logistic regression analysis was conducted. RESULTS: 1. Among sixth grade girls and mothers, the proportion of those who were lean was high, but correlation between the health condition of the children and physique of the children or their mothers was rated. A difference by grade and sex of primary school children was observed in complaints with regard to health condition, like cephalgia and abdominal pain in sixth grade girls. 2. It was found that children belonging to nuclear families whose mothers were less than 40 years of age and were employed did not take breakfast and that among the their-generation children whose mothers were older than 40 years and with or without employment the proportion whose health condition was poor and who spent more than 3 hours a day watching television was high. 3. The results of multiple logistic regression analysis demonstrated that correlation among poor health condition of children and an irregular life rhythm, dislike for certain items of foods, no conversation at meal time, unpleasant meal time, insufficient mastication and skipping breakfast, while for poor health condition, sleep deficit, not consider combination of foods and unpleasant meal time on mothers. CONCLUSIONS: It was ascertained for the first time that were important in good health condition of children correlate regular life rhythm and good health in mothers than the attribute. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Subjective quality of life and positive appraisal of care among Japanese family caregivers of older adults. Feb 2004 Noriko Yamamoto-Mitani,Kazuko Ishigaki,Midori Kuniyoshi,Noriko Kawahara-Maekawa,Kunihiko Hayashi,Kiyomi Hasegawa,Chieko Sugishita Most family caregiving research has portrayed caregiving as a negative life experience for caregivers, but a broader perspective is necessary to examine its impact on the caregiver quality of life (QL). The role that positive appraisal of care plays in the caregiving experience among Japanese famil... ( view more )ies of older adults was examined in relation to the caregiver's subjective QL. Positive as well as negative appraisal of care was measured by a newly developed multi-dimensional scale, which included the domains of 'relationship satisfaction,' 'role confidence,' 'consequential gain,' 'normative fulfillment' (positive appraisal), 'role exhaustion,' 'isolation,' 'relationship difficulty,' and 'symptom management difficulty' (negative appraisal). Subjective QL was measured by WHO/QL-26. Altogether 337 Japanese family caregivers participated in this survey. Stepwise multiple regression analyses revealed that 'role confidence,' 'normative fulfillment,' and 'role exhaustion' had a significant independent impact on physical QL, while 'role confidence' and 'role exhaustion' on psychological QL. The association of 'normative fulfillment' with physical QL was negative while that of 'role confidence' was positive, despite the positive correlation between the two domains. The results underline the importance of considering positive as well as negative appraisal of care when examining subjective QL of the family caregivers. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Factors of positive appraisal of care among Japanese family caregivers of older adults. Oct 2003 Noriko Yamamoto-Mitani,Kazuko Ishigaki,Noriko Kawahara-Maekawa,Midori Kuniyoshi,Kunihiko Hayashi,Kiyomi Hasegawa,Chieko Sugishita The purpose of this study was to examine factors of positive appraisal of care among Japanese family caregivers of older adults. The Positive Appraisal of Care (PAC) scale used in this study is a multidimensional Japanese measure and has four domains: relationship satisfaction, consequential gain, ... ( view more )role confidence, and normative fulfillment. Three hundred and thirty-seven caregivers participated in this survey. Multiple regression analyses revealed that social support and caregiver belief in caregiving had a consistent impact on all domains of the PAC, whereas the impact of caregiver and care recipient characteristics varied among the domains. For example, caregiver age had a significant impact on role confidence and normative fulfillment but not on relationship satisfaction and consequential gain. The differential impact of caregiver and care recipient characteristics on the domains of the PAC underlines the usefulness of a multidimensional measurement. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Interleukin-4 directly inhibits tumor necrosis factor-alpha-mediated osteoclast formation in mouse bone marrow macrophages. Sep 8, 2003 Hideki Kitaura,Noriko Nagata,Yuji Fujimura,Hitoshi Hotokezaka,Mutsuhito Tatamiya,Noriko Nakao,Noriaki Yoshida,Koji Nakayama Recently it has been found that osteoclast differentiation is induced by tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha. Interleukin (IL)-4 was reported to suppress osteoclast differentiation and bone resorption. However, no study has investigated the effect of IL-4 on TNF-alpha-induced osteoclast formation. In... ( view more ) this study, we investigated whether IL-4 inhibits TNF-alpha-mediated osteoclast formation in mouse bone marrow derived macrophages (BMM). First, IL-4 suppresses RANKL-induced osteoclast formation and bone resorption. Next, when BMM were cultured with TNF-alpha, osteoclast-like cells were formed. When they were cultured with both TNF-alpha and IL-4, osteoclast formation and bone resorption was suppressed by IL-4 in a dose-dependent manner. It has been recently found that TNF-alpha and RANKL synergistically promote osteoclastogenesis. Finally, we investigated whether IL-4 had the ability to inhibit synergistic TNF-alpha and RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis, with the result that it effectively inhibited the synergistic osteoclast formation in a dose-dependent manner. We conclude that IL-4 can strongly inhibit osteoclast formation that is related to both physiological bone resorption induced by RANKL and pathological bone resorption induced by TNF-alpha. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles [Live birth distribution by time and place from 1981 to 1998 in Japan] Jan 2003 Noriko Matsushima,Noriko Morita,Nozomi Ogata,Keigo Saeki,Ryozo Matsuda,Norio Kurumatani OBJECTIVES: To investigate the diurnal rhythm of live births labored spontaneously, and the effects of obstetric intervention on birth time distributions. METHODS: The data of live births tabulated by time (one-hour intervals), date and birthplace throughout Japan between 1981 and 1998 were obtaine... ( view more )d with permission from the former Ministry of Health and Welfare. Together with an investigation of hourly birth numbers by place in each year, an annual transition of hourly birth rates in medical institutions and the diurnal rhythm of birth numbers in maternity homes and at home were analyzed using regression analysis. RESULTS: In every calendar year studied the hourly live birth numbers at hospitals showed a single-peak distribution pattern with maximum values at 13:00-15:00. The annual transition of hourly birth rates showed a 10% (birth numbers base) decrease in the 11:00-13:00 period in 1998 as compared with that in 1981, while there was a corresponding increase of 8% in the 13:00-15:00 period. Hourly birth numbers at clinics showed a double-peak distribution pattern with maximum values during the 11:00-12:00 and 14:00-15:00 periods in early 1980, while a single-peak distribution with a maximum value during the 13:00-15:00 period appeared in 1989 and has remained thereafter. Hourly birth rates (birth numbers base) increased by over 6% in the 13:00-15:00 and 17:00-20:00 periods over the past 18 years, while they decreased by 10% in the 9:00-13:00 period. The results at maternity homes were clearly different from those at hospitals and clinics. The live birth numbers totaled for the 18 years showed a double-phase distribution with a maximum value in the 6:00-7:00 period and a minimum value in the 19:00-20:00 period. The best-fit regression model for the obtained data was a sine curve with a maximum value at 6:00 (coefficient of determination 0.97). Hourly distributions of live births at home also fitted best to a since curve with the maximum value again at 6:00 (coefficient of determination 0.95). CONCLUSIONS: The results suggested that the timing of spontaneous live births follows a circadian rhythm and that obstetric intervention affects time distributions of live births by shifting over 10% of births during the night and early morning to a working day service time (9:00-17:00). ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Peer support via video-telephony among frail elderly people living at home. 2003 Hiromichi Ezumi,Noriko Ochiai,Mikiko Oda,Shigeko Saito,Minae Ago,Noriko Fukuma,Setsuko Takenami We evaluated the effect of a video-phone network on peer support among frail elderly people living at home. We conducted a one-year trial of network formation among 14 people (five men and nine women, age range 78-85 years) through coordinator intervention and the use of ISDN video-phones. The purp... ( view more )ose of the intervention was to support and improve the functional independence of frail elderly people at home and to widen their social network. During the study, the subjects made 1400 video-calls, lasting a total of 25,867 min. One subject made no calls. There was greater use of video-phones by those living outside the central city area. Calls between men and women were infrequent. The men generally had shorter call times and made fewer calls. The participants could be categorized into three groups: those using video-phones every day; those using them once per week; and those using them once per month. All subjects in the first group clearly expressed their satisfaction with the video-phone. A video-phone network appears to be helpful for elderly people in their peer support relationships. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles The successful culture and autologous transplantation of rabbit oral mucosal epithelial cells on amniotic membrane. Jan 2003 Takahiro Nakamura,Ken-Ichi Endo,Leanne J Cooper,Nigel J Fullwood,Noriko Tanifuji,Masakatsu Tsuzuki,Noriko Koizumi,Tsutomu Inatomi,Yoichiro Sano,Shigeru Kinoshita PURPOSE: To determine the feasibility of using human amniotic membrane (AM) as a substrate for culturing oral epithelial cells and to investigate the possibility of using autologous cultivated oral epithelial cells in ocular surface reconstruction. METHODS: An ocular surface injury was created in o... ( view more )ne eye of each of eight adult albino rabbits by a lamellar keratectomy, and a conjunctival excision was performed, including and extending 5 mm outside the limbus. Oral mucosal biopsy specimens were obtained from these eight adult albino rabbits and cultivated for 3 weeks on a denuded AM carrier. The cultivated epithelium was examined by electron microscopy (EM) and immunohistochemically labeled for several keratins. At 3 to 4 weeks after the ocular surface injury, the conjunctivalized corneal surfaces of the eight rabbits were surgically reconstructed by transplanting the autologous cultivated oral epithelial cells on the AM carrier. RESULTS: The cultivated oral epithelial sheet had four to five layers of stratified, well-differentiated cells. EM revealed that the epithelial cells were very similar in appearance to those of normal corneal epithelium, had numerous desmosomal junctions, and were attached to a basement membrane with hemidesmosomes. Immunohistochemistry confirmed the presence of the keratin pair 4 and 13 and keratin-3 in the cultivated oral epithelial cells. Corneas that were grafted with the cultivated oral epithelial cells on an AM carrier were clear and were all epithelialized 10 days after surgery. CONCLUSIONS: Cultures of oral epithelial cells can be generated to confluence on AM expanded ex vivo from biopsy-derived oral mucosal tissue. Autologous transplantation was performed with these cultivated oral epithelial cells onto the ocular surfaces of keratectomized rabbit eyes. Autologous transplantation of cultivated oral epithelium is a feasible method for ocular surface reconstruction. The long-term outcome of such transplantation is not yet clear, and its feasibility in clinical use should be evaluated further. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Shear-induced von Willebrand factor-mediated platelet surface translocation of the CD40 ligand. Dec 15, 2002 Noriko Tamura,Minako Yoshida,Noriko Ichikawa,Makoto Handa,Yasuo Ikeda,Teruhisa Tanabe,Shunnosuke Handa,Shinya Goto BACKGROUND: Platelets, which can adhere to damaged vascular surfaces and release bioactive substances upon activation, may play important roles in regulating local inflammatory responses. We focused on the surface translocation of CD40 ligand (CD40L) molecules when the platelets are exposed to a hi... ( view more )gh shear stress. METHOD: Blood specimens were obtained from eight apparently healthy adult donors. The number of CD40L molecules appearing on the surface of platelets after exposure of platelet-rich plasma to a shear rate of 10,800 s(-1) was determined by quantitative flow cytometry. RESULTS: The number of anti-CD40L IgG molecules bound per platelet increased from 15+/-80/platelet before to 355+/-122/platelet after exposure of the platelets to a shear rate of 10,800 s(-1) (p<0.01), but not after their exposure to the relatively low shear rate of 1200 s(-1). This shear-induced platelet surface translocation of CD40L, mediated by the von Willebrand factor (VWF)-GP Ibalpha interaction, was enhanced in the presence of a low concentration of epinephrine (100 nM), which by itself, however, could not cause platelet activation. Our results demonstrate that fluid force induces the appearance of CD40L on the surface of platelets, and also that this phenomenon is enhanced in the presence of a low concentration of epinephrine, corresponding to that released by sympathetic stimulation. ( view less ) View Full Abstract View Article Details View Coded Data Related Articles Page 1 of 141 1 2 3 4 > Last >> (3516 articles found)

      
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